Part of the Learning Center · included with Baby's First Year
Not every family needs full-time childcare from a single source. Some need a live-in caregiver who provides flexible coverage across long days. Some need a babysitter for date nights and occasional weekday gaps. Some need a patchwork of part-time arrangements that adds up to full coverage. Each of these arrangements has a different legal classification, a different payment structure, and a different set of rules. This guide covers the three categories of occasional and alternative care: the au pair program (a federal exchange program with specific requirements), babysitters (the most common informal arrangement), and occasional caregivers who fall between the two. The legal classification determines what the family owes, and getting it wrong is more expensive than getting it right.
The full guide comes with your plan.
Baby's First Year includes the whole Learning Center, this guide included: the knowledge behind every task on your personalized, dated timeline.
See plansAlready have a plan? Read it inside your plan
Every figure checked against official sources; last reviewed August 2026. Mothers Plan provides information and organization, not legal, tax, financial, or medical advice.